If you have an idea for an app, you should have written down everything you want your app to do, and identified the most important parts of your app. If you haven’t done that, then that is what you need to do, so go away and do it. Then come back here and read on about how to plan.
So, you’ve got your idea, you’ve got your wishlist, and you’ve got your MvP items. Where do you go from here?
Most people will rush out now and start looking for a developer to start developing their app and get the quotes and then find out how much it will cost and get disheartened and give up.
Right now, I don’t think you should do that.
An app is like a business. And now you need to make a business plan. I hear so often people say, it’s small thing, it doesn’t need a business plan. But, these people should read the first paragraph of this page – https://www.business.gov.au/planning/templates-and-tools/business-plan-template-and-guide
It says “A good business plan can help you secure finance, define the direction of your business and create strategies to achieve your goals.”
The most important thing, I think, in this sentence that it will help you create strategies to achieve your goals.
You see, if you walk into most application development companies, all over the world, onshore, offshore, expensive or cheap, and give them your wishlist, their response will be, this will cost heaps of money and take heaps of time (replace “heaps” with whatever you think is a lot of money and a lot of time). I seriously have heard quotes for basic apps of $400,000 and 1.5 years work.
The reason for this is two-fold.
1) Actually, the app developer doesn’t know what you want. They don’t know what you want to achieve, and they don’t understand your app
2) Actually, you don’t know what you want. You don’t know what you want to achieve and you don’t understand your app
So. Take a breath. What do you want to achieve? What direction are you taking your app? What are your goals? Your goals should include timelines, budgets, how much time you are able to spend. And you know what else they should include that most people forget? They should include how you are going to generate revenue for your app. The first step to generating revenue for an app is gaining users. How are you going to gain users for your app? Have you budgeted for marketing and acquisition? Have you thought about how long it might take to actually gain your users? There are 2 million apps around remember? How will you cut through?
These are the questions you need to answer before you approach developers. And trust me. If you have your plan, your brief and your goals (timeline and budget), your developers will love it. They’ll be so happy to read it and invest their time. Because they will then know how to make what you want, within the budget you want, and the time you want.
So, take your wishlist, and start your next piece of homework, planning for the future. I suggest actually using the Business Plan Template on the above link and going through that. It is hard work, and actually, disheartening at times. But it will make you confront what you need to and make you invest your self into it.
When you’ve done. Come back and start getting quotes. I’ll talk next about how you should approach developers.
